DELAWARE STATE SENATE

153rd GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 7

RECOGNIZING JANUARY 1, 2025 AS HAITIAN INDEPENDENCE DAY IN THE STATE OF DELAWARE.

WHEREAS, in 1659, the French colony of Saint-Domingue – now known as Haiti – was established. The French colonists began setting up sugar and coffee plantations worked by imported bondsmen from Africa. By 1788, the island had over 700,000 bondsmen working in brutal conditions; and

WHEREAS, as a result of overwork, lack of proper medical care, and inadequate food, clothing, and shelter, the mortality rate far exceeded the birth rate; and

WHEREAS, thus, the colonial system in Haiti was described as one of the most brutally efficient bondsmen colonies and France’s most profitable colonial possession, which they called “The Pearl of the Antilles.”; and

WHEREAS, in 1791, the long-seething tensions between the bondsmen and the French planters reached a bloody climax; and

WHEREAS, in 2 months, 4,000 white people were killed, and 180 plantations were destroyed, the loss of property amounting to about 2 million Francs; and

WHEREAS, in September of that same year, the whites began organizing themselves into militias and struck back, leading to the loss of 15,000 black lives; and

WHEREAS, at this point, the bondsmen demanded freedom from slavery and not independence; and

WHEREAS, on February 4, 1794, the French National Convention declared the abolition of slavery in all French colonies. However, this didn’t bring about instant transformation as the French later attempted to reimpose slavery, leading to another revolt in 1802; and

WHEREAS, on November 18, 1803, the final battle that secured victory for the bondsmen occurred, called the “Battle of Vertières,” which marked the first-ever successful slave revolt to lead to the creation of an independent state; and

WHEREAS, Haiti proclaimed independence from the French colonial authorities on January 1, 1804. “Haiti,” which in Taino means “country of mountains,” was renamed under the direction of Jean-Jaques Dessalines from Saint-Domingue; and

WHEREAS, as a result, Haiti became the first independent nation led by a black majority in the post-colonial era and Latin America.

NOW, THEREFORE:

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the 153rd General Assembly of the State of Delaware that January 1, 2025, is recognized as Haitian Independence Day in the State of Delaware.

SYNOPSIS

This resolution recognizes January 1, 2025, as Haitian Independence Day in the State of Delaware.

Author: Senator Brown